Tech Journal - December 2020
TraceHarvest Launches Blockchain for Ag
To collect and analyze the data from seed to sale to table is the ambition of TraceHarvest, a blockchain network for agriculture launched by BlockApps.
After two years of testing its technology with Bayer in the U.S. and Brazil, the startup is ready to expand its digitization of farming.
The goal of TraceHarvest is to improve supply chain information, which includes uses such as carbon offset credits or food safety recalls.
Read more at bit.ly/TraceHarvest
Rantizo Receives Swarm Application Approval
Earlier this year, the Federal Aviation Administration granted Rantizo a waiver for multiple unmanned aerial vehicle operation with one pilot and one visual observer.
“To our knowledge, we are the first company with approval for more than one-to-one universal application. We have approval for the entire contiguous U.S.,” says Michael Ott, Rantizo CEO. “These advancements will be both industry leading for agricultural technology and drone spraying, and also monumental for farmers needing in-field applications to protect their crops.”
When the company started doing drone-based applications, they were able to apply 3 acres per hour. After designing booms and upgrade kits, that increased to 14 acres per hour. The swarm capability adds up to Rantizo being able to apply up to 40 acres an hour or 400 acres a day.
In the field, the drones are required and programmed to stay 100' apart. They are also outfitted with collision avoidance. The Rantizo contractors use a flat rate of charging $150 per hour per drone.
Read more at bit.ly/SwarmApplicationApproval
John Deere Removes Guesswork From Guess Rows
AutoPath, a new software technology from John Deere, maps the planted rows during the initial pass of every field, removing the need to establish traditional A-B guidance lines.
“AutoPath begins with that first pass in the field,” explains John Mishler, John Deere precision ag marketing manager. “What AutoPath does is map those rows, and then uses that data of those mapped rows throughout the crop year to automatically create guidance lines for each of those next in-field passes.”
An Iowa farmer who beta tested AutoPath says without the accuracy of it, he would not have been able to harvest derecho-damaged corn.
To run AutoPath, implements and tractors must be equipped with StarFire receivers. For spraying or other applications, the data flows through the John Deere Operations Center, so farmers can elect to share field data with ag retailers or commercial applicators who are making custom applications.
Read more at bit.ly/JohnDeereAutoPath
A Hexagon Prism for Agronomic Decisions
Startup Advanced Agrilytics uses proprietary computing models to help guide agronomic decisions which are ground-truthed and delivered by a boots-on-the-ground consulting team.
The Advanced Agrilytics team normalizes yield data and adds layers of elevation, slope, soil wetness and soil types to make field prescriptions. They view that data in a hexagon shaped grid system with each equaling 0.14 acres. The pricing can range from $8 per acre to $15 per acre.
Read more at bit.ly/HexagonPrism
